Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Nathaniel
T he garden shears cut through the stem of the Persian buttercup in front of me with ease, and I add them to the pile I’ve already collected. With the mild winter we had, these gorgeous flowers made an early appearance in February.
The blooms aren’t fully open yet, but the pinks in the flowers will be lovely when paired with the white hyacinths I clipped earlier. I run a calloused finger over the delicate petals and take a deep breath.
After the disaster at the docks, I used the walk up to the Homestead to cool my head. When I arrived home, I found Blake, Dominic, and Quinn creating a mess on the dining table with an art project involving pinecones, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, and way too much glitter.
We desperately need to finish the upstairs space. We can’t be glitter-bombing our guests once the resort opens.
I was drawn to the back hall, and I told the others I planned to pull weeds in the garden. They had given me knowing stares and allowed my flimsy excuse.
In truth, I hoped to catch a glimpse of Chloe, to check if her door was open to make amends for how I handled her arrival at the dock. I acted like a hormonal Alpha teenager, encountering pheromones for the first time. I let my Alpha take too much control, but with my instincts restrained nowl, I wanted to properly introduce myself.
And I’d be lying to myself if I didn’t also acknowledge I wanted to be closer to the tantalizing Omega who awoke these dormant desires within me.
The door to her suite was shut, though, so I followed through with my earlier statement and busied my hands with the earth instead, gathering an apology in flower form. Blossoms the shades of her blush, with a fragrance that compliments but doesn’t overwhelm her own alluring scent.
An offering of peace.
I stride back toward the house, bouquet in hand. When I open the door, I find Dominic and Blake huddled outside Chloe’s now open room.
I stride forward. “What are you two doing?”
Their heads whip in my direction. Blake holds a finger to his lips while Dominic gestures for me to shush, both of their expressions a warning.
Flower stems gripped tightly, I move closer with quiet steps until I can peer over their shoulders into Chloe’s room. The scene before me isn’t at all what I expect.
On her bed, Chloe lies curled up, fast asleep with Holden, their heads nestled together, and his arms wrapped around her smaller form. They both appear clothed, Holden still in what he wore earlier, as if he didn’t plan to fall asleep.
A sense of contentment washes over me, and my Alpha rumbles in approval.
When Chloe first arrived on our island, I was so determined not to let this Omega in. Now, though, seeing her with Holden, I can’t deny the way our bond hums in her presence.
“We came to check what Holden wanted to do about dinner,” Blake whispers. “But he’s down for the count.”
“Good. He needs the rest.” I reach out and ease Chloe’s door shut, careful not to disturb the sleeping occupants.
Blake whines a protest, and Dominic claps him on the shoulder. “You’re not allowed to sneak in while they’re sleeping. You’ll have to wait until breakfast to see her.”
“Dominic’s right. Let them be.” I nudge the two men toward the dining room. “Leftovers will have to do for dinner tonight.”
Dominic and Blake exchange a look but don’t argue.
Quinn sits next to Sprinkles, who is sprawled out in front of the fireplace, and I raise my voice. “We’re eating in the kitchen tonight. Go claim your dinner before Uncle Blake eats everything.”
Quinn tosses her coloring book aside and scrambles to her feet, racing for the kitchen. “I want Uncle Dom’s soup!”
He groans and chases after her. “No! It’s going in the trash!”
“Dominic tried to make Chloe chicken noodle soup earlier,” Blake informs me. “He overcomplicated it, then almost had a meltdown.”
“Is Chloe more open to him now?” I keep my voice quiet so our bondmate won’t overhear us talking about him. “When she found out he was part of our pack, she was ready to leave right away.”
He stops next to the dining table, which still shows evidence of glitter in the cracks. “She allowed him to register as her courting Alpha.”
Shock jolts through me. “What?”
“I haven’t heard the full story, but they found her at the hospital, with a guard outside her room. They set off some alarms and slipped her out in the chaos.” He digs a blunt nail against the table runner. “Dominic drove them straight to the Omega Registration Center to cancel her courtship with Louie. She then signed a new courtship with Dominic and Holden.”
“Was it to…” I frown, not sure how to take this news. We haven’t even talked about it as a pack. “Did she do that to stop Louie from trying to reclaim her?”
“Dominic worries that’s all it was for him, but I’m not so sure.” He peers back toward the back hall. “You saw her and Holden in there. I want to go register tomorrow. Will you come with me?”
“I…”
“Come on, Nat.” Blake squeezes my arms. “You feel it. Admit it, at least to me.”
“I do, and you know it.” Worried that he’ll crush the flowers, I push his hands away. “But I’m not going to run off half-cocked before I speak to her. You shouldn’t, either. The last time you two talked, you were pretty harsh to her.”
Blake’s mouth opens then closes, and his shoulders sag. “No, you’re right.”
“Slow down a little.” I head for the kitchen door. “She’s not going anywhere, at least for the time being.”
“That’s what I thought when we went to search for Quinn, and then Chloe ended up injured while I was gone and vanished from the hospital.” Blake quickens his step to catch up to me at the door. “I won’t risk that happening again.”
I don’t want to risk it happening, either. But Blake rushing got us in trouble. We need to follow the steps in the proper order this time if we want to keep this Omega, no matter how much my Alpha yearns to be closer, to claim and possess her. The bigger part of me demands that I protect our vulnerable mate, even if it’s from one of my bondmates.
“Based on her current condition, she’s not going to be up for wandering around the island alone for at least a few days.” I push the door open, my focus still on him. “Plenty of time for you to talk to her first.”
Blake gives a reluctant nod, and I turn toward the kitchen, only to freeze at the disaster.
Food scraps and a chicken carcass litter the island, and somehow the glitter made it in here already, purple and pink sparkles glittering from the grout between the tiles. Dishes fill the sink, and three pots sit on the counter by the sink.
Dominic and Quinn stand at the open fridge, digging through the bowls and plastic containers that Holden had stashed away.
Unsure where to start, I walk forward. If Holden wakes up and finds this disaster waiting for him…
“New plan!” I announce. “It’s a popcorn and ice cream movie night for Quinn.”
A squeal pierces the air, and Quinn shoves the Tupperware container she holds at Dominic. “I’ll get the popcorn!”
As she races off for the pantry down the hall, I turn to our black-haired bondmate. “You will clean this mess up right now. I want it to shine before you go to bed tonight.”
“Blake dirtied some of the dishes,” he protests.
“Do you want to risk Holden coming in and seeing it like this?” I sweep an arm over the space. “We’ll be eating burned meals for a week.”
Holden lets a lot slide around the house, but the kitchen is his domain, and he expresses his displeasure with the food he serves us.
“Okay, okay.” Dominic puts the food back and closes the fridge. “I don’t want everyone in the house to suffer because of my mess.”
“Good.” I dig out a vase from the cart next to the window. “Blake, you grab the ice cream and bowls.”
Quinn comes racing back, a huge bag of cheddar popcorn clutched to her chest. “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!”
Without stopping, she zooms right out the two-way door.
Arms loaded, Blake follows.
Dominic crosses his arms and arches an eyebrow. “What are you going to be doing?”
Slipping the flowers into the vase, I walk to the sink to fill it with water. “Chloe can’t stay in the suite down here. I’ll see what we need to do to turn one of the rooms upstairs into a space for her.”
“Good idea.” He considers it a moment before adding, “Put her at the opposite end of the wing from Quinn. If she accepts you all as her Alphas, you don’t want to traumatize the kid.”
I don’t miss the way he leaves himself out of the equation, but I don’t press the sore topic. He’s already flagellating himself for his past actions.
“Maybe the one nearest the stairs?” I shut off the faucet. “It has an alcove where a writing desk would fit.”
“That’s perfect. I can order one and have Kyle pick it up tomorrow. An office chair, too. Some basic necessities that she’s missing…” Dominic takes in the messy kitchen and sighs. “Get out of here. I want to clean this mess up so I can sit down with my laptop.”
Smiling, I head out of the kitchen and carry the flowers up to the second story. At the top of the stairs, the hall splits. To the left are the suites for guests who want to stay at the Homestead. To the right is a small sitting area and an unobtrusive doorway with an Employees Only sign.
I let myself into the family part of the Homestead.
When we designed the large cabin, we wanted a space for ourselves where guests couldn’t interrupt us. We built with the intention of our family expanding, and several of the rooms sit empty, waiting for more pack to fill them.
A family room sits to the immediate left of the entrance, the windows providing a view of Sprinkles’s dog run and the back garden. A door at the end of the hall of bedrooms leads to the office over the garage and an outside exit, providing a way to leave here without going into the guest side of the cabin.
Stepping into the first bedroom on the left, I flip on the light.
The room faces the swath of lawn in front of the treeline. I wish it looked out over the garden, but we reserved the best views for our guests.
A covered king-size bed sits in the center of the room. I walk over and set the vase on the nightstand, then pull off the protective dust sheet to reveal the wooden bedframe and padded bench at the foot of the bed. Balling the sheet up, I set it near the door before turning to take in the space.
It needs an area rug, and there’s enough room for a reading chair next to the electric fireplace in the corner. It would be nice to paint the white walls something softer, more feminine. Should I ask Chloe what she would like? Or would it be better to surprise her with a finished space?
Would she like a dark and moody olive tone? Or something brighter, like sky blue? Or would a neutral gray or beige be more her style? A dusky lavender would be lovely against her pink tones.
This is where my lack of knowledge about our Omega kicks in. I both want to surprise her and want her to feel like the space belongs to her.
I return to the flowers, using my utility knife to trim the stems, adjusting the height of various blooms to create an elegant arrangement.
These flowers are a poor substitute for what I want to give Chloe, but they’re a start.